Arizona's prop. 110 proposal would protect military sites

Editor's note: This story is the second in a series explaining the 10 propositions that will appear on the Nov. 2 general-election ballot.

PROPOSITION 110 State trust land changes Proposition 110 would change how Arizona's state trust lands are sold, leased and exchanged for public or private property.

The proposition would amend the state Constitution, making it legal to sell or lease state trust land without a public auction or notice in order to prevent land use that state officials determine would interfere with military sites' operations.

Prop. 110 also would allow state officials to exchange trust land for private or public property when the exchange is done for land-management purposes or to protect military sites. Land exchanges would be allowed only after state officials provide public notice, hold a hearing and secure voter approval.

BACKGROUND: The Legislature referred this proposition to the ballot.

When Arizona was a territory, the federal government began to set aside land to benefit schools. By 1929, there were about 10.9 million acres of Arizona state trust land. As of fiscal year 2008, about 9.2 million acres remained in the trust.

State officials sell or lease the land through a public auction to provide funds for primarily K-12 schools and other trust entities.

Although Arizona has authorized land swaps for decades, including exchanges to create larger blocks of trust land, state leaders never amended the state Constitution to allow land exchanges.

In the 1990s, the Arizona Supreme Court determined that land exchanges were illegal without the constitutional amendment. Prop. 110 would rectify that.

If Prop. 110 passes, some state leaders say they could better protect operations at military sites such as Luke Air Force Base, which has been threatened by encroachment from nearby communities want- ing to develop the land.

The Legislature has made several attempts in recent years to pass similar measures, but voters have rejected changing the Constitution.

PRO ARGUMENTS: Supporters say the measure is needed to protect the state's military sites from development that could interfere with military operations. Protecting such sites, they say, is important to national security and maintaining the jobs and economic benefits associated with Arizona's multibillion-dollar military industry.

Conservation groups in favor of the measure say land exchanges could create larger preserves for wildlife habitat through a public process that requires voter approval.

OPPONENTS: No one filed official ballot arguments in opposition.

CON ARGUMENTS: Some conservationists, including the Sierra Club, have opposed past measures to authorize land exchanges, worrying that the measures lacked transparency and oversight.

Groups seeking extensive reform of state trust land management have argued that Prop. 110 does not go far enough to protect military sites, citing the public vote as a hurdle.

There have been questions about the extent to which Prop. 110 could protect Luke Air Force Base because there is not much state land near the base.

Sources: The Arizona State Land Department, Sierra Club Grand Canyon Chapter, Secretary of State's Office, Arizona State University's Morrison Institute for Public Policy